Neutron-dominated mixed field irradiation testing stations at CERN are employed for scientific, technological, and industrial application. Currently operating infrastructure include the NEAR irradiation station at the n_TOF facility and a similar infrastructure at ISOLDE, called ISIS (ISOLDE Irradiation Station). NEAR is operating to the neutron time-of-flight (TOF) facility n_TOF [1] served...
The radiation environment (e.g. gamma, neutrons) can damage or destroy electronic devices or sensors, corrupt signals in analogue or digital circuits, corrupt data or programs in digital circuits (memories, microprocessors, microcontrollers, FPGAs, etc. ). These effects can appear gradually due to cumulative phenomena, or instantaneously due to a single particle (e.g. a neutron) causing a...
Particle beam radiation, and therefore neutrons, are classified as ionising radiation due to their biological effect. They can affect biological tissue in two main ways: by inducing cell death and by inducing genetic alterations that can lead to stochastic or deterministic effects in cells. Neutrons have been classified as high LET (Linear Energy Transfer) particles and, due to the large...
Most cancer patients worldwide who undergo radiotherapy are treated with megavoltage X-rays, though other forms of radiation (such as protons or heavy ions) are being incorporated to clinics. In all these treatment types, the absorbed dose is the fundamental magnitude to determine the effects of ionising radiation on both normal or tumor living tissues. However, a single relationship between...
The International Fusion Irradiation Facility-DEMO Oriented NEutron Source (IFMIF-DONES) will be an experimental facility that will provide a characteristic spectrum of high energy and intensity neutrons. Its primary functionality will be to test materials under equivalent nuclear fusion irradiation conditions to qualify them for the future nuclear fusion power plant DEMO. The material...
Nuclear medicine and radiopharmacy are two disciplines that are making great strides in the development of new radiotracers. Theragnosis with radiopharmaceuticals represents a breakthrough in increasingly targeted cancer therapies. This concept involves diagnosis and treatment with two radionuclides of the same element or related molecules with different isotopes ensuring that what you image...
